Gary Harwood

I have had one or two replies, one from a man in a similar situation to see how the ad was going and an offer to get on board with a business starting up but it wasn't feasible to join with them.

Surprisingly, since it ran in article form on Sunday and Monday there have been a few calls from people but mostly media. I have one job which I'm interviewing for at the minute, but this was due to a direct application, not the ad itself.

What was the last straw for you, what made you think "I have to do something drastic"?

Well, I had lost my job twice in two years, a huge blow for anyone to take. I was denied rent assistance and had to move out of my apartment, thankfully my friend has kindly been letting me stay on his couch in the mean time. I lost my car and then after I had applied for roughly 400 jobs (and mean turned down for everything from a management role to a pizza delivery job) I just thought, enough is enough!

What have the responses been like for the 400+ jobs?

To be perfectly honest, 97% would not even have the courtesy to reply and say you have not been successful. Now I know they must get hundreds of applications and perhaps I'm simply from a different age, but I think the least a company should do is acknowledge your application. In the 80's you would always receive a written letter to confirm your application. A few people have said I'm over-qualified for the role, but I don't see how this is a problem!

So what do you have to offer companies?

I suppose the message I want to get across is take that one step to meet me, because when people meet me I think I can impress them. Take that one chance in the hope that something will come out of it.

We hear a lot about improving your chances of getting a job by using online social networking sites, do you use sites like LinkedIn and Facebook?

Absolutely, I have a profile on both and do my best to use them effectively. In total, I spend about 3 hours a day just looking for work on the internet

What's next for you?

Well there has been a huge reaction to the phrase "Brand Gary" so I think I'm going to set up a Brand Gary Facebook page and try and get it to as many people as possible. Whatever happens, I'll keep going, if this doesn't work I'll do something else. I'm resilient and I'm not afraid to change.